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Tuesday, 10 August 2010

Inculturation?

They are Hebrews: so am I. They are Israelites: so am I. They are the seed of Abraham: so am I. (2 Cor 11.22)

Ever since St Paul, great Christian preachers have spoken in a manner suited to the people they are addressing. St Louis Grignon de Montfort used to pick fights with yobs in the market square when he heard them blaspheming. Being a stout chap, he used to get the better of things. Then, when honour was settled, he would preach the gospel to them with, shall we say, authenticity.

Fr Zakaria Boutros looks and sounds for all the world to my suburban eyes like one of the more fiery Ayatollahs; but he is preaching the gospel to Muslims of the middle-East. Apparently his programme is compulsive viewing in much of the Islamic world with predictable results. The US government has reportedly offered a 25 million dollar bounty for Osama Bin Laden. Al Qaeda has offered a 60 million dollar bounty for Fr Zakaria Boutros.